4 Quick & Hearty Cold-Weather Recipes

Here are four recipes that fit the bill, and better yet…they’re quick, easy, and affordable!

1. EASIEST MEATLOAF EVER

Easiest Meatloaf Ever! Straight from your freezer to your crockpot!

I’m doing a little bit of freezer cooking/prepping today, because our daily life has just been out of control lately. I’m having trouble getting anything on the table, let alone a home-cooked meal, so I absolutely have to prep ahead on weekends when Dr. B is home to help me with the munchkins.
Right now I’m making what I call the Easiest Meatloaf Ever. I literally just dump a bunch of ingredients in my KitchenAid mixer, let it mix everything up, throw it in a ziplock bag, and into the freezer it goes until I’m ready for it. The day I’m going to make it, I just set it in the crockpot, squirt on a little ketchup, and let it cook. How easy is that?
For a meatloaf, you can really add anything you want and the beauty of it is that there’s really no need to measure. But, here’s what I added to mine: (this recipe makes 2 loaves!) 🙂

This is an easy and delicious meat loaf recipe that you can just take right out of the freezer and throw in your crockpot! This meatloaf holds it’s shape REALLY well, doesn’t crumb or fall apart when sliced.

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef

3 eggs

1/4 c parm cheese

3/4 c shredded cheese

1/2 c chopped onions

3/4 c Italian bread crumbs

1 tsp basil

1 tsp garlic powder

Dash cayenne pepper

Dash Worcestershire sauce

3 Tbs ketchup

1/2 packet (or entire packet)onion soup mix

Instructions

Throw it in the mixer and let it spin! Or dig in with your bare hands if you’d rather. Just mix up up reeeaaaal good!

I take half the mixture and form it in a loaf pan, then take it out carefully without disturbing the shape, and place it in a ziplock bag.

Write instructions and what it is on the outside of the bag with a sharpie.

On the day that you’re going to serve it, just give your crockpot a quick spray of nonstick cooking spray, put the frozen loaf in the crockpot, put ketchup on top and let it cook on low about 4 hours or til done.

I have added a layer of veggies, potatoes, or cream soup (or all of those things) first and then set the frozen meatloaf on top and it’s a great one-pot dish!

It really doesn’t get any easier than this! Less than 10 minutes to prep and it cooks itself!

This is a dish my mother-in-law has been making forever, and it’s one of my husband and my son’s favorite comfort foods.

I love this, because you can make it anyway you want…throw in extra veggies if you have them leftover. You could even use chicken instead of tuna!

Here’s my spin on the classic. 🙂

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Author: Kelli Brink www.foodwineandpoopydiapers.com

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 30 mins

Total time: 45 mins

Serves: 6

In honor of Throwback Thursday, I’m making Tuna Noodle Casserole. This is a dish my mother-in-law has been making forever, and it’s one of my husband and my son’s favorite comfort foods. Here’s my spin on the classic.

This is a go-to favorite in our family. It’s made of nothing but canned veggies, broth & herbs. It could not be simpler! You’ll be surprised at how DELICIOUS it is! It costs just a few dollars for a GIANT crockpot full, and it is so healthy! I make it healthier by always draining and rinsing my canned veggies to remove the excess sodium.

Crockpot veggie soup!

Cheap Homemade Crockpot Veggie Soup

Recipe Type: Soup

Cuisine: Crockpot

Author: Kelli Brink

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 6 hours

Total time: 6 hours 5 mins

Serves: 15

This is a go-to favorite in our family. It’s made of nothing but canned veggies, broth & herbs. It could not be simpler! You’ll be surprised at how DELICIOUS it is! It costs just a few dollars for a GIANT crockpot full, and it is so healthy! I make it healthier by always draining and rinsing my canned veggies (except tomatoes) to remove the excess sodium.